1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to adjustable end brackets for shelves, and more particularly to end brackets which are used with modular coated wire shelves.
2. Prior Art
Shelves made of spaced wire rods coated with plastic are becoming increasingly popular both to promote air circulation about and through the items and thus reduce the likelihood of mildew damage, and also because they lend themselves to "do-it-yourself" installation. Many such shelf items are now available in building supply supermarkets open to the general public. Typically, these shelves include vertically spaced upper and lower front rails, a back rail, and a plurality of stringers which extend between the back rail and the upper front rail, and are evenly spaced along the length of the rails, but leaving exposed or extended ends of the rails beyond the last of the stringers. In some such shelves, some or all of the stringers may extend around the front upper rail and down to the front lower rail. The shelves are modular and are sized to fit within a standard size closet, or between walls of a standard or modular spacing.
There are a number of means for mounting a modular coated wire shelf in a closet. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,598,064 discloses a modular coated wire shelf having front and rear wall mounting brackets. The front wall mounting bracket, or end bracket, is secured to a wall by a screw and a wall anchor, if necessary, and includes a U-shaped channel shaped to receive the upper and lower rails. In one embodiment, a spacer is positioned between the upper and lower rails in the U-shaped channel to prevent the weight of the load resting on the stringers from deflecting the upper rail toward the lower rail.
An improved end bracket for such shelves is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,318,487. Such bracket provides a stepwise adjustment relative to the wires of the shelf, to accommodate sidewall spacing somewhat greater than the shelf width. The available adjustment, however, depends upon the spacing between successive ribs in the bracket, which define a series of slots. The slots cannot be less than the wire thickness, so that an infinite type of adjustment is not possible.